Keys to the Kingdom: Dearly Beloved
by thepenishellamightier257
Summary: Despite what prior experience may have suggested, Sora, Azlyn, Telary, Riku, and Kairi know there's more to being friends than just standing together against the forces of evil. A series of very short vignettes, highlighting the bonds between Keys to the Kingdom's Big Five. Friendship, plus some SoKai/Azlary fluff. Contains Original Characters.
1. Sora and Kairi

_Takes place between the Life Goes On stories Team Spirit and Bachelor/Bachelorette_

"Y'know," Kairi says, quickly raising her bronze blade to deflect Sora's determined swipe at her, "it's usually customary to end a date night with a kiss goodnight. Not a sparring duel."

The pair stand in the middle of the play island's beach, the only souls around for miles. For whatever reason, the kids of Destiny Islands just don't seem to flock to this place like they once did. That, plus the fact that night fell about half-an-hour ago, leaving only the moon and stars behind for illumination, guarantees the pair's privacy. Which is good, since they're currently attacking each other with magical blades.

"Who said this is the end of the date?" her boyfriend suggests teasingly, breaking their blade-lock and taking a step back. "How do you know I'm not just getting warmed up?"

The words, combined with his playful yet utterly confident tone, give Kairi a momentary pause. In the back of her head she can hear Azlyn, screaming "Head in the game, Princess" at her. But the lively female knight isn't here right now, carefully scrutinizing every move that the redhead makes. She's back in her home, getting up to who knew what kind of trouble.

Besides, considering what kind of thoughts and feelings are giving Kairi pause in the first place, Azlyn really has no room to judge.

"You okay?" Sora asks, seemingly from out of the blue. Kairi starts herself back into focus, moving her eyes up and down the boy's body with her mouth slightly open.

"Uh…" That's all she gets out, and even though she's known Sora her entire life, and has subsequently seen the brown-haired boy do and say all manner of embarrassing things, not to mention dome some pretty humiliating stuff herself, she can't keep her cheeks turning red.

"We can stop if you want," Sora begins, going from quipping from sputtering in the space of a heartbeat. He lowers his blade, looking at Kairi with wide eyes. "I mean, I thought you'd appreciate, like, the chance to hone your skills, or whatever. But if you don't, we can totally stop. Or maybe you want to go home, you might be tired after…"

"Please stop talking," she interrupts, holding up a hand and hoping to the heavens above that that didn't sound too bitchy. After a quick wince, she presses on. "Wow, that came out… I don't mind. Y'know, the sudden sparring. Not a conventional date activity but…"

Ugh. It's like awkwardness is some tangible, physical disease leaping from one half of the couple to the other. Kairi's willing to bet doctors have no cure.

"I actually think we should stop," Sora says, finally managing to speak in a steady, deliberate voice. Light flashes in his hand, dismissing Kingdom Key to wherever it goes when not being used. "No offense, but you don't really seem to be in the right, uh, headspace for it right now."

Kairi can't help but release a sigh of relief. With another flash, more demure than that of her boyfriend's Keyblade, her weapon is gone too. "Good call, I think." The girl laughs, unable to contain the loud burst of noise. "You've got a pretty incredible ability to read my mood, do you know that?"

The Keybearer just shrugs. "I wouldn't be a very good boyfriend, or even lifelong regular friend, if I couldn't, right?" he says, walking over to her.

 _Uh oh_ , Kairi can't help but suddenly think. It's nice that he's so attentive, but the possibility that he might have picked up on what the thoughts that just distracted her were specifically…

It isn't something they've talked about. The physical aspects of a romantic relationship, that is. From the beginning there's just been a sort of silent consensus that they aren't quite ready to start moving at Azlary speed in that arena. They've kissed of course, occasionally even moving into a horizontal position to do so, but anything beyond that has been a weirdly taboo subject.

But lack of verbal expression hasn't stopped either of them from thinking about it. They're teenagers, for goodness sake.

"You're great," Kairi says, letting Sora put his hands on her hips. Almost unconsciously, she grips his shoulders. Pressed close, they stare up into each other's eyes. "In both of those categories. No complaints."

"Good," he replies, leaning down to kiss her. It lasts for a few seconds, both of them hype-aware of every moment. When it finally ends, it's right back to eyes-gazing. "Is that enough for you, right now?"

Kairi blinks a few times in rapid succession, realizing somewhere in the back of her mind that _holy shit, this conversation is really happening_. What should she say? Probably just what she feels, but… After a moment, the Princess of Heart internally chastises herself. This is _Sora_ , for crying out loud. They're in a relationship, the kind of thing built largely on communication. Saying what she feels, plain and exact, is definitely the best course of action.

"I'm really not sure," she finally replies, hoping that doesn't sound as lame to him as it did to her. Frightened that it maybe in fact _did_ , she extracts herself from his grip. From there, it's almost reflex to turn away. She feels cold now that he isn't holding her, so she does for herself.

"Oh," Sora says, and she can hear him very gently kick up some sand. A common Sora-reaction to a situation out of his comfort zone. "Well, I guess I should tell you that I'm fine with it. Y'know, the line we've got. The crossing of it is all up to you."

She turns back to him, her eyebrow lifting almost all on its own. "This is a team decision, Sora. It's not like you paid four goats for me or anything."

The boy's hands go up defensively. "I know, I know. I'm just telling you that I, personally, speaking as one member of the team, am ready to go across the line. I just need the go ahead. From the other team member. That's you, in case you didn't… Well, I guess that's pretty obvious." He laughs, tugging at his hair and pulling a face that has Kairi giggling. "Wow, I guess there's something to Azlyn and Telary's way of getting this kinda thing out of the way immediately."

Kairi doesn't let him realize what he might have just implied. She's had enough awkwardness for tonight, thanks very much. "Well," she says after a minute, trying not to laugh again at how Sora's head snaps up to look at her, almost violently, "speaking as the other team member…" She hesitates, instinctively knowing that this is a moment that will echo in her life for years to come. "I am _so_ ready."

The couple falls silent for a long, long time. The world around them goes on making noise, waves lapping against the shore and birds getting out their last rambunctious squawks before settling down to sleep. So at least there's some kind of buffer.

"That is… very good to hear." Sora looks pretty dumbfounded, hands twitching like he has no idea what they should be doing right now. After a moment he winces, finally seeming to settle on rubbing at his neck. "So, should we just do it right here, or…?"

"Sora!" Kairi yelps, her entire body threatening to collapse as the utter ridiculousness of that notion resonates. From there, the laughter is uncontrollable. Letting go, the Princess of Heart falls on her back. Sand kicks up all around, some of it threatening to get into her mouth. Kairi doesn't care, too caught up in her near-hysteria.

Her boyfriend catches the mirth, a much better infection than the earlier awkwardness. He manages to make it a few steps closer to her, only letting himself fall once he's by Kairi's side. They lay in the sand for the next minute or so, laughing to their hearts' content.

Finally they manage to peter off, bellies aching from the sustained mirth. It takes another full minute almost to catch their breath, a few aftershocks escaping their lips as they stare up at the waxing crescent moon and glittering stars up above. Once everything is quiet again, the couple turn their heads to face each other, hands automatically reaching out to grasp one another.

"I don't think I'm quite _that_ ready," Kairi says, inspiring a few more light chuckles. "Adding in the outdoors, at the beach part seems like an advanced move."

"So, four walls are a requirement then," Sora says, faux-serious. "Fair point, I think. Very much fair. I assume some kind of…" The boy swallows thickly, unable to get the next word out.

"Mattress?" his girlfriend suggests slyly, getting a nod of confirmation. Once that's done, she turns her face back to the sky above. "It should be special, too. Not the _where_ exactly, but… Maybe we need a really good _when_."

"Hopefully a really _close_ when too," Sora chimes in, bringing Kairi's gaze back to him. He flashes a sheepish grin. "Not that I'm pushing. Because that wouldn't be cool, and I am cool. Very cool. Look the word 'cool' up in a dictionary and…" He finally catches a glimpse of the expression on her face. "You get the idea."

She sits up, maneuvering her left leg so she can pull a knee to her chest. She looks down at him, expression mildly guarded.

"I have a suggestion, maybe," the redhead says, sounding very cautious. He raises an inquisitive eyebrow to prompt her, and she goes for it. "What about at the wedding?"

Now Sora sits up, leaning on his arms with his legs still out in front of him. He's looking right into her eyes, and from the way they occasionally twitch away, she knows the gears are turning in his head.

"I know it's still a few weeks from now," she continues, trying hard to keep herself steady. "And it's sort of an awkward pair of events to link together in our memories like that, but still." She shrugs. "Seems right."

Sora gets up properly now, getting on his knees. The couple's eyes never leave each other, until he leans in, hands on her cheeks, and they kiss again. Shivers race up both their spines, but they manage to push past that fact.

"I think," Sora says as he pulls away, leaving just enough room to move his lips, "that is a great idea." Then they kiss again, letting that play out for a few minutes without feeling the need for anything else. Or at least not admitting to feeling the need.

Finally, more or less satisfied, they pull away for good.

"This was a good date, I think," Kairi says, breaking the tender silence and standing up. Once steady, she reaches down to help Sora to his feet. "You know how I love setting a plan."

"And you know how much I love you," Sora says, smiling brightly.

"Without a doubt." She gives his cheek a peck, then pulls back to look at his eyes again. They've always fascinated her, so blue and bright. "I love you too."

They begin making their way to the dock and the single boat waiting there, holding hands. As Sora leaps into the boat, steadying himself before holding his hands up to help Kairi in, the girl can't help but think of their moment alone on this dock years ago, just before their lives really started.

" _I just can't wait,"_ she'd said, looking out at the sinking sun. _"Until we set sail. It's going to be perfect."_

Just before she hops into the boat with her boyfriend, Kairi silently gives her younger self a solemn, "Ya got that right."

 **Kind of a funny story about this one. I was thinking the other day, and subsequently talking to a friend, about writing for an ensemble. We talked about a lot of stuff, and one interesting thought we discussed was this: Every relationship pair within the larger ensemble should have a unique, interesting dynamic if you want them to work. Think of shows like Friends, where you could make a storyline with any combination of characters and have it work. Anyway, I started thinking in relation to this story, and realized that I wanted to test the theory on my own Keys to the Kingdom ensemble.**

 **Interestingly enough, a review I recently got on Life Goes On asked about me doing a slice of life story.** **This is that kind of story. Well, stories really. 10 very short vignettes, each highlighting the relationship between a pairing of the five main characters in the Keys to the Kingdom ensemble (Sora, Azlyn, Telary, Riku, and Kairi). They'll be scattered around the timeline, and I'll make sure to indicate where exactly they're all placed.**

 **So, that's the premise. I hope you'll find this enjoyable, and that I can make every vignette unique and interesting.**


	2. Riku and Telary

_Takes place between Life Goes On stories Law of the Jungle and Team Spirit_

The door to Disney Castle's gym slams shut, and almost immediately Riku starts feeling a little better. He can thankfully no longer hear the voices of the trio inside, one in particular. Azlyn's absence from his presence alone can usually do wonders.

He looks up and down the corridor he's standing in, not seeing another soul. That's good enough for him, to be honest. People are sort of confusing, Riku's always found. Even Sora, his best friend since before he can remember, doesn't always make sense. Being alone is nice once in a while. Not that he isn't aware that there can be too much of a good thing, a little place called the Realm of Darkness taught him that. Still, he himself is often Riku's favorite company.

But he knows he can't just stand around in a corridor alone all day. Steeling himself for any possible upcoming encounter, he starts up the hallway.

Disney Castle is a bright, beautiful place. Almost every inch of it gleams with a carefully applied polish, maintained by the army of animated mops in residence. Mickey had described it often, in great and fond detail, during their travels together. The place more than lives up to the image Riku had conjured in his head. Lost in comparing his imagination with reality, Riku only realizes he's reached the colonnade after he hears the library doors opening up.

Telary emerges, gripping a folder full of papers in his hand. "I'll be right back, Your Majesty," he calls back into the room, grinning in that nervous way he always does. "You sure I can't get you anything while I'm gone? I'd be happy to…" The wizard pauses, nodding sheepishly as Mickey speaks to him. Riku can easily imagine his mouse friend assuring the redhead that he has no need for anything at all for the moment. "Okay. Be right back."

After a quick bow, Telary backs away and closes the doors very carefully. Looking down to thumb through some of the papers, he gets a few steps closer to Riku before he realizes the silver-haired Keyblade wielder is also in the hallway.

"Hey," Riku says with a subtle nod, his usual greeting to the wizard. For some reason, he always feels like any other kind of acknowledgment might come off as too aggressive.

"Hi, Riku!" Telary replies with plenty of enthusiasm, as he always does. Said enthusiasm never sounds completely sincere to Riku, but he knows that's just the way the wizard talks to most people, always trying just a bit too hard. "I take it the lesson got a bit hectic for you, huh?"

He shrugs one shoulder. "You know how those three can get," he says, grinning slightly, as if the trio of their younger friends is a kind of inside joke shared between the pair of them. "Besides, I wasn't really needed at the moment. So I thought I'd…"

"You can totally go in and see the King, I mean, see Mickey." Telary shakes his head. "I still haven't quite got the hang of that 'first name' business yet. I guess a lifetime of habit dies hard."

"What are you doing?"

"Just a bit of minor King stuff," Telary replies, shrugging. His are always considerably twitchier than Riku's. "You wouldn't believe how things pile up when you're gone for more than a year. But don't think because he's working that the king won't…"

"Actually," Riku says, not even trying to hide the bemusement in his voice, "I was referring to _you_ , personally. The folder…?"

Telary almost drops the item in question, but manages to hold on. "Uh, these are some old files. The king just needed to see them for a second, so I pulled them up from an annex a few floors up. He's done with them now, so back they go." He shifts his stance, pulling the folder even tighter to his chest. "Like I said, Mickey would be more than happy to see…"

"That's fine," Riku interrupts, consciously not shrugging again. "He's probably got to focus on this stuff. He's the king after all." There's a moment of hesitation, which in the back of his head he knows his stupid, and then, "Maybe I can come with you? Keep you company."

The wizard's jaw drops a little at that suggestion, quite obviously taken by surprise. He recovers in the span of a few heartbeats. "That would be cool, I suppose. In fact, I welcome it!"

Their quest set, the pair walk off down the hall, Telary immediately starting up a flurry of chatter. Riku doesn't say anything, but he can't help but feel like the wizard thinks silence might be deadly in this situation. Still, the silver-haired Keyblade wielder tries to absorb as much information as he can. Considering how quickly his companion is talking, that is no mean feat.

"…after that, of course hanging up rapiers any old where came quite into fashion," the wizard says, possibly referring to the thin-bladed sword they passed a moment ago, hanging on the wall. "When the Musketeers turned into the Royal Guard, that sort of thing fell right out of fashion. But we still keep some up, as a reminder of the old days. Ah, here we are!"

They stop at a pretty nondescript door, simple blue wood with a brass handle. A plaque's mounted at eye level, reading, "Library Annex B and File Storage." Telary opens the door right up, groping for the light switch.

When Riku finally gets into the room, he sees that, like its entryway, the place is hardly anything special. A few metal shelves are arranged against two walls, full of books. Another one only takes up part of the third wall, the rest occupied by a squat filing cabinet. Humming to himself, Telary opens a drawer and started filing.

Feeling awkward just standing around, Riku asks, "Can I do anything to help, or…?"

Startled, Tel drops the paper he's holding. He snatches it up again quickly, proving that his time adventuring has considerably honed his reflexes. "Uh, unfortunately this is sort of a one-person job, so… Sorry."

"It's no problem," Riku assures his nervous companion. "I asked to come along, after all." He leans against a shelf, again trying to make himself look non-threatening. It seems like that's always his goal where Telary is concerned these days. Their serious issues are far behind them, but still. There's just something about the wizard that screams _handle with care_.

"I am glad you came," Telary says almost absently, sorting through the folder again with practiced carefulness. "I hate to admit it, but this tiny little room freaks me out a little. Don't quite like coming up here alone. Plus, company is always good, right?"

"More or less," Riku replies, a notion suddenly hitting him as he speaks. He hesitates over whether to share or not, before deciding that Telary is an emotionally sensitive guy who might appreciate a little candor, sappy or not. "Especially someone, y'know, your own age."

The sentiment gives Telary visible pause, but the wizard recovers admirably, filing away the last piece of paper very calmly. When he turns, after closing the drawer with a loud noise, he's smiling.

"I know what you mean," he says, shaking his head as he walks back out into the hall. Riku steps out first, pausing as the wizard closes the door. A moment later, Telary's turned around again. he's still got that smile going. "I love the others, obviously, especially Azlyn, but…" He sighs, before stepping up very close to Riku and saying in an almost-whisper, "It can start to feel like I'm babysitting, from time to time."

The silver-haired young man smiles right back. "I know what you mean, exactly. It's not like that with you."

"I appreciate that," Telary says, his grin suddenly turning quite a bit shyer. "You're a good guy to have around, Riku. I really feel bad that I couldn't see that before."

Riku shrugs, not bothering to make it any more demure than usual. "Hey, I didn't exactly make it easy. And you…"

" _Riku_! _Telary_!"

Sora's voice interrupts Riku, coming from down the hall. Footsteps can be heard too, several sets from the sound of it. It seems that the younger members of Team Keyblade have caught up to their older companions.

"Well," Telary says with a sheepish, but undeniably sincere, smile, "that was fun while it lasted, huh?"

Just as Sora, Azlyn, and Kairi are rounding the corner, Riku throws his head back and laughs.


	3. Sora and Azlyn

_Takes place between Life Goes On stories Sora and the Forty Thieves and Law of the Jungle._

"This is, hands down without a doubt, the _best_ time we've ever spent together, Az," Sora says with a wide grin, leaning back in his chair. One hand rests on his stomach, the other dangling loosely by his side.

"Not to mention the best part of wedding planning," the knight agrees, idly scraping her fork across the small plate that just a few seconds ago had housed a lovely cake sample. Chocolate something or other with some fancy kind of frosting. Fancy and _delicious_.

They sit at a counter in one of Disney Castle's smaller kitchens, all alone except for each other. The pastry chef, a rotund and very flamboyant flamingo with some nigh-unpronounceable name, had excused himself from the room to check on some of his other projects. Empty plates are scattered around the rest of the island, only crumbs remaining to mark their past existence.

"You sure we can't get that Chef Whatever guy to give us some more samples?" Sora asks, sitting up a little straighter. "Because I _think_ Cake Number Four was the best one, but there was some serious heavy competition from that last one. Possibly a second opinion is in order."

Azlyn shakes her head. "Naw, I feel pretty good about what I got. And just so you know, it's Cake Number Two all the way."

The Keybearer makes a face. "Well, I guess that figures," he says after a moment. "You go right ahead and jump all over my _least_ favorite. What's with that weird lemon intrusion thing or whatever? Makes it all too sweet."

"Too sweet?" he knight shoots back with a slightly raised eyebrow. "You, of all people, should not be allowed to go around calling things 'too sweet'."

Sora rolls his eyes. This is familiar territory for the two of them, Azlyn busting his chops over being "such a sap". It's never a fight he can really win, considering how much of a point she's got there. Still, he does have his manhood to defend.

"You're the one who, I remember, was all 'oh Sora, my best friend, be my maid of honor'," he mocks her, intentionally pitching his voice in a girly register that sounds more like Queen Minnie than his friend.

"Figures," she grumbles, shaking her head. "I do _one_ nice thing for you, and you just decide to use it as ammo. Sometimes, I really question our friendship."

Sora's playful expression immediately drops, and he can see that it makes Azlyn feel bad. The boy can't help it though. Even though she's clearly kidding, just the thought of the knight doubting their bond…

"You're not exactly fighting off that 'too sweet' charge, man," she says, scooting a little closer and switching her playful tone to a more serious one. After a second of wondering what to do, she puts a hand on his upper arm. "Gee, I was just messing around. I would never question our friendship, okay? C'mon, what other guy would say yes to being maid of honor?"

"You're too easy," Sora says, a smile breaking through his pout. He can tell she doesn't quite buy that he was kidding, but that's hardly worth stressing over. "And I _still_ think we haven't tried hard enough to come up with a different title than 'maid of honor'!"

"Oh, you tried plenty hard," Azlyn says, taking her hand away and leaning back. "Even had some good suggestions. But what can I say, I'm just an old-fashioned traditionalist."

That earns her another eye roll. "Yeah, that's the very first thing I think of when you come up. Old-fashioned. Immediately followed by 'don't piss her off'."

"So, what do we do next?" she asks, switching the subject to something a little less emotional. Looking at the clock on the wall, she chuckles. "We still have another twenty minutes before the redheads come in here and demand to know which cake we like."

Sora pats his belly, which he's clearly situated to bulge out comically. "Well, I don't know about you, but all this cake is threatening my sick bod. Whaddya say we jump down to the gym, go a round or two?"

"Not bad," she says, pushing her chair out. Sora is just getting ready to do he same when he feels a hard yank on his seat. He yelps in surprise, arms flailing to maintain his balance.

"Oh, real funny Az," he says, jumping off the chair and giving her an exaggerated glare. "You're paying for that on the mat."

"Big talk," Azlyn replies, backing up towards the door. "Let's see if you can back it up." A thoughtful look crosses her face for a moment, then it lights up with a smile. "Race ya there?"

Sora takes a step and stops, crossing his arms and looking thoughtful. Azlyn just watches him. "Well," he says after a second, slow and deliberate. "I guess…"

That's all the Keybearer gets out before springing to action, sprinting for the door and pushing past his friend. As he steps into the hallway, he can hear the knight's indignant cry. A few seconds later, the door swings open again, her footsteps clomping unsubtly. After a quick glance over his shoulder, Sora kicks in the afterburner, feeling the air rushing around him as he sprints.

"You are so gonna get it!" Azlyn yells after him, huffing and puffing as she springs into a strong dash of her own.

It's probably not very dignified, two seventeen year olds fresh from a wedding planning session having a race down the hallowed halls of a castle. But honestly, when has a little thing like _dignity_ ever stopped the dynamic duo that is Sora and Azlyn?


	4. Kairi and Telary

_Takes place immediately before Bachelor/Bachelorette_

"It's definitely around here somewhere," Telary says, though as per usual the wizard sounds far from confident. "Right? I mean, I remember that Mr. Hewley's house was a few streets over, but not if that was a few streets _north_ or _south_." Heaving a sigh, he turns to his companion. "Do you have any ideas, Kairi?"

His words appear to startle the Princess of Heart, whose head quickly snaps down from observing her surroundings with careful scrutiny. Instantly, he feels bad for interrupting her reverie. After all, this is the first time she's been back to Radiant Garden since she was four years old.

"I, uh, really can't say I do," she replies, rubbing sheepishly at her arm. A moment later, she shakes her head and scoffs. "Ugh, this whole thing is really messing with me. How about you?"

Telary releases a chuckle he didn't even suspect he had stored up in him. Rubbing once at his eyes, the redhead leans back against the closest building.

"Definitely," he replies after a second. By then, his sister has come to lean beside him. After sparing her a quick glance, the wizard turns his gaze outward again.

The street stretches out to either side of them, its paved walkway splitting off in a dozen different directions. Either way could lead the pair to their goal, or totally astray. Once again, Telary is struck by the total unfairness of their life situation. Leon and the others don't seem to have had any trouble relocating their old haunts, from before The Fall.

"Was Mr. Hewley the guy who had that sword Azlyn always wanted to look at?" Kairi asks, frowning at the half-formed memory.

"Oh, yeah," her brother replies, smiling as his own recollection sparks up in his mind. "Yeah, she got thrown out of there like, three times. And guess who always had to make her apologize?"

"But after that," she says with a twinkle in her eyes, "which direction did you take to go back home?"

Once again, his sister proves a tremendous help in the arena of memory jogging. "We went _north_!" the wizard blurts, pushing excitedly off the wall as obfuscating mist clears away from some old memories. "There was some stand that sold little pieces of rock candy, and I used to have to keep her from snatching some when we walked past."

"So, north it is then," Kairi says, leaning away from the wall and clapping her brother heartily on the shoulder. They set off in that direction, and it isn't a minute later before she asks, "Isn't it nice, having a partner for this? I think it's really nice."

"I totally agree," he replies, nodding amicably.

A group of kids rush by them in the opposite direction, giggling amongst themselves. Up the street, an old woman sits on her porch in a rocking chair, enjoying the warm day. Everywhere Telary looks, life has returned to what was once Hollow Bastion. It's far from the first time he's realized this, but every time hits him just as powerfully.

"It's too bad Azlyn wasn't interested," Kairi says, shaking her head only just slightly. "Is it just me, or is she just in general not as gung ho about rediscovering our roots?"

"It isn't just you, believe me," he answers, unable to keep his mouth from turning down into a frown. "She keeps telling me that she's the kind of girl who only wants to move forward, and that's true enough I guess, but…" The wizard sighs, shrugging. "I think there's also something to the fact that, even if she starts recovering memories with us, she was still an orphan to begin with. Maybe it makes this all a bit too bittersweet for her."

"I can see that," his sister agrees amicably, taking another look around. One eyebrow raises just slightly, and suddenly she's turning left down another street. Telary follows along after her. "But, for me, there's just something about my life here that, I don't know, _compels_ me to find out more." She chuckles. "Maybe that's just me being a nerd. I love learning new things, discovering."

"You said your grandpa on Destiny Islands was a sailor," Tel chimes in thoughtfully. "Maybe there's some wanderlust that got passed down."

"He was always talking to me about his glory days," Kairi replies. "It all sounded so exciting. So, yeah, I guess I caught a bit of the exploration bug."

The mention of grandparents can only lead to one shared thought between the redheaded pair. So far, all attempts to locate their grandmother had failed. What they haven't said, quite pointedly in fact, is that that can only mean one thing, and it isn't very pleasant to contemplate. The Fall of Radiant Garden had been, according to those who had lived through it, a very brutal time. An older woman, living all alone, most likely would _not_ have been lucky enough to be among the escapees.

At the very least, that conclusion spurs Telary and Kairi on to more aggressively pursue any memory of the past they can. If the real thing is gone, intangibles are the next best option.

"We're close," Kairi suddenly says, breaking her brother from his rather morbid thought process. He looks at her, sees how wide her eyes have suddenly become. "I remember that I tripped here and skinned my knee. You practically carried me back to the house, so it can't be far now."

The wizard chooses to ignore that inadvertent dig at his strength, instead focusing on the fact that their goal may be just around the corner now, possibly quite literally. Without thinking, he reaches out to clasp his sister's hand.

Looking up, he lets out a gasp as he reads a street sign. "This is it," he says, having to fight his emotions back in order to get the words out. "Chocobo Avenue. I remember now. This is… This is…"

"Our street," Kairi finishes, her own jaw dropping incredulously. The siblings exchange a quick look, and then she's pulling Telary forward.

The street they find themselves on is so much like any of the others, comfortably sized houses lining the paved pathway. But somehow, in their hearts, Kairi and Telary know that this place is special. Bracing themselves, they walk down the avenue, opening themselves up to any sign they can get from the universe.

Until finally, they stop at a townhouse about halfway up the street. A squat, one-story building with light blue siding and an orange roof. The front door is painted a vibrant purple, which Kairi instinctively recognizes as her favorite color. There's no mistaking it, this is the place.

Tears prick at Telary's eyes and he lets them fall without any shame. A quick glance to the side tells him his sister's reaction is much the same.

"This is it," she says, her voice thick with so many emotions that Tel can't even begin to pick apart. "I almost can't believe it's real but… This is it."

Telary lets go of her hand, instead placing his arm over her shoulder and pulling his sister against his side. She leans into him, and together they simply stand and let the beautiful feeling of _home_ flood into them.


	5. Sora and Riku

_Takes place between Keys to the Kingdom II and Life Goes On._

If there's one thing that can be said of living in and out of the Realm of Darkness for the better part of a year, it's that it really gives one a fuller appreciation of sunrises. The Destiny Islands have always boasted particularly beautiful ones, too. Riku sits at the edge of the play island's dock, content to relax and enjoy what's before him.

His companion, however, is not quite so calm. Sora's feet tap impatiently against the dock, breaking the silver-haired young man's tranquility. Frowning, he opens his mouth to tell the younger boy to chill out for a few seconds. But before he can form the words, Riku stops himself. Perhaps once upon a time he might have admonished the Keybearer, but now…

"So, are we gonna start running here, or are you just going to go back to sleep?" Sora's asks, his voice lighthearted but undoubtedly teasing. "That would be kinda funny, right? You falling asleep like some lazy bum?"

Riku snorts, pushing himself to his feet. Facing Sora, he gives his young friend a fond smile. "I'm sure I would never hear the end of that."

"Nope," the spiky-haired boy replies, hopping off the deck and onto the sand. He giggles upon impact, kicking up a little extra sand with a merry grin. "Just like if you lose this race!"

"Didn't know we _were_ racing," Riku replies as he takes the sensible way down via the stairs.

Sora gives him an odd, bewildered look. "Uh, yeah. Why wouldn't we race, Riku? That's kind of our thing. Y'know, competing?"

"Hm," Riku offers, carefully keeping his expression neutral. If Sora wants to race, then more power to him. "Alright, get ready. Mark, set…"

Before Riku has a chance to say "go", Sora is off and dashing down the beach, laughing. The older boy frowns, gritting his teeth to bite back the insulting reprimand that just sprang to mind. Instead, he only starts to run himself. Putting on all his speed, he manages to catch up within a few seconds.

He looks down, instinctively looking for any weakness he can exploit. It's only when he's in the midst of contemplating a well-timed kick to Sora's rising leg that he pulls his mind away from thoughts of such pettiness. And then a second later, his opponent quite deliberately kicks back a puff of sand. Only quick, honed reactions allow Riku to shield his eyes in time.

"Sora!"

The younger boy just laughs in reply, throwing his head back even as he puts on another burst of speed. Well, Riku suddenly decides, two can play at that game. Grunting, he launches himself straight at Sora's back. They both go down hard in the sand. But that's only the beginning of the struggle, as Sora turns and attempts to elbow Riku in the stomach. He barely dodges, grabbing the younger boy's arm and using his leverage to flip Sora over.

The Keybearer struggles admirably, his other hand coming up at Riku's head. Another easy block, and now Riku has both of Sora's wrists locked down. He slams the younger boy's arms into the sand, looking down at his opponent with fire in his eyes.

Sora squirms underneath him, fighting to break free from the grip. For a long moment Riku watches, before a thought forms in his mind. Suddenly, this whole contest of strength seems unspeakably horrible. Wincing, the silver-haired young man releases his friend, rolling off Sora's chest to sit by him in the sand.

"Whoa, Riku," Sora says sitting up and giving his best friend a tap on the shoulder. "Gave up a little sooner than usual there. Figured I was too tough now to ever say uncle?" For a moment, the elder young man is silent. Long enough to make the Keybearer quite concerned. "Hello? Destiny Islands, calling Riku!"

"Sorry," he apologizes, shaking his head as if snapping out of a dream. He looks at Sora, staring at him with concerned eyes and an expectant look. "I just… For a second there, I couldn't help but think about, y'know. The last time I hurt you. And I didn't want to do it again…"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Sora interrupts, holding up his hands. The look on his face is appropriately serious for the situation, but a hint of amusement lurks underneath. "First, that's a real high opinion of yourself you got there, thinking you can hurt me!"

Riku can't help but laugh at the cocky joke. No matter what the situation, Sora always seems to know how to perfectly pierce the tension with humor.

"And second," he continues, still chuckling a bit at his own gag, "I _know_ you weren't gonna try to hurt me. We were just messing around, Riku. Y'know, a thing _friends_ do?"

Suddenly, all that alarm and worry Riku had been experiencing turns into embarrassment. Of course, once again, he's just being silly. Much like his humor, Sora's heart is _never_ to be underestimated.

"I guess I…" Riku says, shaking his head at his own foolishness. "Maybe I still haven't quite shaken off the Realm of Darkness yet."

"Which is _fine_!" Sora blurts defensively, holding up his hands. "I know it took a lot out of you, the constant moving and the whole 'Xehanort's Heartless' thing." Smiling, he clasps one hand on his best friend's shoulder. "Take all the time you need until you're back to your old self."

Riku can't help but snort. "I'm not sure I'd want to go _that_ far back. As much as it ticks me off to take shit from Azlyn, I _was_ kind of a dick sometimes."

Sora nods, a little meekly. "Yeah, I guess that's a good point. But, I'm also thinking of something else. Something you said, actually. It was during your whole "hehe evil' thing, but it was true. You always push me Riku, just like I push you."

The silver-haired young man nods, even though he's cringing inside. Reminders of his mistakes tend to do that to him, even if he has moved past them.

"That can be a really good thing, I think," Sora continues, casually leaning back on his elbows. "Sometimes people need a little pushing, or honesty they might not like to hear. Even if it hurts a little, in the long run it can really help. I think it's good to have someone like that in your life, don't you?"

"Yeah," Riku admits. Even after all that talk about not underestimating his young friend, he can't help but marvel at how much he's done exactly that in some ways. "Next time you need a little honest push, you can count on me."

Sora beams at his best friend. "Good."

"Speaking of…" Riku subtly shifts his body, tensing up and getting ready. "Race isn't over yet!" Laughing, the silver-haired young man slaps his palm into the sand, hurling a cloud of it right at his young friend's face. He quickly jumps to his feet, taking off down the path again.

Riku hears Sora behind him, yelling out in frustration. This time, however, he doesn't let himself think that it might mean his best friend will hate him for it.

 **This took longer than I thought, but I was kinda blocked for awhile. Hopefully now that this is done, the rest will flow out more naturally.**

 **Special PS, you _might_ consider re-reading the epilogue of Keys to the Kingdom II again. I just snuck in a new segment there that helps set up KttK III. I left it out when I initially finished that story because I wasn't sure I would go ahead with my original trilogy-capper idea, but now that I'm full steam ahead on that I figured I should put it in.**

 **Also, in case anybody missed any of my warnings, the KttK III worlds poll is still up, and ends probably after I get out the next chapter of Chain of Memories.**


	6. Kairi and Azlyn

"You're kidding me, right?" Azlyn sighs, slouching down even further in her chair. "How many times have I told ya, don't _kid_ a _kidder_ , huh?"

Kairi frowns, lowering the dark red rose she's been sniffing. It looks nothing like the kinds of flowers that grow on Destiny Islands. Fragrant, too. Unfortunately, most of that fragrance seems to be in the arena of "dirt".

"You've never told me that, Az," she replies, carefully returning to flower to the vase she'd pulled it from. "Unless you slipped it in between telling me I was dead, and I just didn't notice."

"Maybe I did," the knight counters, glaring at some baby's breath like they'd just summoned Heartless. "Kinda like _you_ slipped in us going freaking flower shopping on our Mouseburg trip today. I am going to make you do _so_ many push-ups for this, I'll just tell you that right now."

"Worth it," the Princess of Heart says nonchalantly. She's already moved on to the next vase, pale purple irises just begging to be examined. "Unlike food choice, or the band, bouquet arrangement is something you've shown almost no interest in. And yet, next to the dress it might just be the most important thing for a bride."

Azlyn rolls her eyes, then giggles as she catches a look at a display of wide, star-shaped green and yellow leaves apparently called "ladies' mantle".

Kairi is on her in an instant. "See something you like? Something that makes you happy? Is it pretty? What color, because I think we should really stick to the realm of soft pastels…"

"Whoa, whoa!" Azlyn holds up her hands in front of Kairi's face. Used to quick movements being preludes to attack, the redhead takes a step back and raises her fists. "No, not gonna hit you. Big points for preparedness, though. I just thought one of these flowers had a funny name. Though, to look at it you'd think it was more of a leaf than a flower…"

"Oh," Kairi says, relaxing. She sighs, sinking down onto the closest bench.

For a moment, Azlyn just stares down at her friend/trainee/wedding planner. Then, steeling herself for the upcoming emotions-fest, she takes a seat next to Kairi.

"Just go ahead and tell me," the knight says, hoping that doesn't sound too dismissive. "What's with the flowers hard-on?"

The redhead hesitates just a second before replying, giving Azlyn a serious look. "We don't talk a lot about… before, y'know? Like, back in Radiant Garden, before."

"No," is Azlyn's simple reply, expression tightening almost imperceptibly. In her lap, her hands begin fidgeting. "It's, y'know… I'm not so much into it, like you and Tel are. It was a long time ago, and…" Running out of words on the topic, the knight simply shrugs.

"I have this memory," Kairi continues, suddenly staring off into the middle distance. "It's pretty, um, pretty _clear_ compared to some of the others. Actually, I saw it in a dream. Vivid one." She shakes her head, like clearing out a few cobwebs. "I'm really young, and I'm out with Telary, and I'm in this big garden. I guess my grandma was there too, but I don't know, she isn't in the memory.

"Anyway I'm in the garden, enjoying all the nice bright flowers. It's warm, with this nice breeze. And then, suddenly, I just get this feeling that I'm not alone. So, I turn around, kinda scared, and I see… I see this girl. Shorter than me, her face is sort of dirty and her clothes are obviously secondhand. She's playing in the garden too, except she's pulling up every flower she can get her hands on…"

"But," Azlyn suddenly interrupts, looking back to Kairi, "your grandma always said not to pick the flowers. That they were planted for everyone to enjoy. So you start reading me the riot act, which gets Tel's attention, and of course _he_ freaks out even harder. He was wearing some stupid bow tie." A brief pause, then she stammers out, "I was, uh, I was kinda jealous of the dress you were wearing. I never had nice stuff like that."

For a long moment Kairi is silent, merely looking at her friend with shining, teary eyes. Azlyn can only stand to look back in quick, small glances. Waterworks are _so_ not her thing, except for when it's Telary. And yet, her vision is getting embarrassingly blurry as well.

"You remember," the Princess of Heart finally says, placing a hand on her chest. "The first time we met, you really…"

The hug is inevitable, and Azlyn is actually pretty proud of the sheer force of it. An awkward beat later, she returns it. They sit like that for another few seconds. That's about all Azlyn can take before she starts to become mindful of everyone else in the shop.

"Okay, Kai," she says, grabbing the other girl's arms and prying them off. That takes a bit more effort than she'd expected. Once the redhead has released her, Azlyn shakes her head bemusedly. "What is with all the people I know being such criers? Gee, if only Riku was this easy to get teary, I'd have to work a lot less on my insults."

"You know you love it," Kairi shoots back, wiping her eyes. She needs a few more seconds to compose herself, which Azlyn takes advantage of to get rid of the moisture in her own eyes. "Anyway, _that's_ why I really want to be involved in this. It's because of flowers that we're friends, y'know?"

The knight isn't sure that logic actually tracks, but she's not cruel enough to point that out and break the moment. Instead, she just nods along.

"Then let's get serious about this, huh?" Azlyn declares, standing up and looking around the flower shop. There's a lot to choose from here, a cabaret of vivid colors practically assaulting her eyeballs. But, for Kairi's sake, she can stand it. Probably.

"Thanks, Az," the Princess of Heart says, giving her friend a smile.

"Yeah, yeah," the knight replies as the girls begin to walk through the store. "And hey, don't think that 'flowers are why we're friends' thing is gonna have me like, _aiming_ the bouquet at you or anything. That's something you gotta handle on your own."

 **Short and (hopefully) sweet. A big part of the next Life Goes On story revolves around Azlyn and Kairi's relationship anyway, so I didn't overthink this.**

 **Shoutout to Spiderfan626 for the review of last chapter (And to answer you, yes Riku has a relationship arc in KttK III). For probably the last time, I'll point out that the worlds poll is up until I finish off COM, which should be happening soon if anybody who wants to vote hasn't yet. Until next time!**


	7. Sora and Telary

_Takes place between Team Spirit and Bachelor/Bachelorette_

Closing his eyes, Telary furiously flaps a large towel against the flames engulfing the wooden practice dummy. Unfortunately, he's not quite quick enough to prevent the fire's spread to the next dummy in the row. The continuing conflagration prompts a terrified screech from the wizard, and for a moment he seems completely at a loss.

Luckily, Sora manages to keep a level head. He holds up the Keyblade, leveling its tip at a space between the burning dummies. "Blizzaga!"

The spell flies from his mystical weapon, spreading wide enough to capture both of the fires. And, simultaneously cover the wizard in a layer of frost.

"Uh, oops," the Keybearer apologizes, rushing up to his older friend. He quickly grabs the towel out of Tel's shivering fingers, throwing it over his shoulders instead. "Guess that got a little out of hand."

"N-n-no," Telary argues, shaking his head. Of course, that could just be a result of all the shivering. "Y-you did some good, quick th-thinking there, Sora. This whole s-session has been about improving your magic, right?"

"True." Sora smiles, clapping his friend on the shoulder. "That's good. I keep getting into situations where, looking back, a little magic would have been pretty useful. But I just keep going with what I'm used to. I need to get out of the habit."

"You sound," the wizard says, frowning slightly, "like you're getting ready for something big to go down again."

The Keybearer frowns himself. "Do I? I'm really not thinking that way. Or I guess I'm _hoping_. But then I remember that I can hardly leave Destiny Islands without some bad guy showing up to start stuff." He sighs, turning away from his friend and walking a few feet. "Or, y'know, my own friends."

Telary winces, immediately catching the boy's drift. Yes, Azlyn had screwed up royally those few weeks ago in Olympus. She'd confided in him several times that nightmare scenarios still occasionally found themselves playing through her head. And that's not even mentioning the coldness towards her that Kairi has developed.

"Sorry," Sora apologizes, snapping Telary from his thoughts. "I don't mean to talk bad about your future wife like that. I know she didn't really mean the whole 'selling my soul' thing, and she gave up the entire fortune she loved so much for me, and after Riku it would be a really crappy thing to not show her the same forgiveness."

"Your feelings are your own, Sora," the wizard says, cautiously approaching the younger man. He puts a hand on his shoulder. "Work through them as fast or a slow as you like."

"Thanks," the Keybearer says, turning quickly and giving Tel a hug. "How did you get so good at giving advice?"

He shrugs. "Not sure. Heck, I'm not sure I even _am_ good at it."

Sora shakes his head, grinning as he pulls out of the embrace. "Trust me, you are. Even when you don't know what to say, you say the right thing."

"S-stop," the wizard stammers, blushing furiously. "I just try to help people, if I can. Besides, you and Azlyn have always done most of the heavy lifting. The least I can do is cheerlead." He shake his head, accompanied by a wave that's as if he's sweeping the whole subject away. "Anyway, now that _your_ training's been going on for an hour it's time for, um, mine."

Sora nods enthusiastically. Working together, the two quickly put away the smoldering training dummies, and pull out the special equipment that they'll need for this next phase.

"I can't believe that _this_ is how you listen to your music," Sora remarks, examining the record player like a researcher with some piece of ancient history. Noticing the black record already resting on the player, he picks it up and gives that a thorough examination too.

"We have CDs," Telary assures the Keybearer, rolling his eyes. He quickly snatches up the record and places it back in its proper setting. "But King Mickey is adamant that this is the best way to listen to dance music. Then again, he also writes a lot of letters when we have two dozen perfectly good telephones in the castle." He shrugs. "Anyway, I pulled this out from one of the storage rooms. It had a note on it, but I've never heard of anybody named Oswald in the castle, so I figured he wouldn't be coming around to get upset about it."

"I gotta say, Tel," Sora says with a chuckle as the wizard tries to figure out the record player, "this, uh, request of yours was kind of unexpected. I mean, I've _seen_ you dance before. Maybe you remember the night you and your soon-to-be wife first expressed your feelings? There was that whole ball thing, I'm pretty sure you defiled the castle library…"

"That was a fluke, Sora," Telary argues, finally comprehending how to make the old music player work. "And it's been a while, and there's going to be a lot more dances at the wedding than there was then, so…" Finally, he manages to get a tune from the machine. A classic, slow tempo jazz song floats through the air.

"Never thought I'd be in this position," Sora mutters, shaking his head as he approaches Telary. He gives the wizard an expectant look. "Well, aren't you gonna start this?"

"Um, okay," Telary replies, nodding. After a moment, he frowns. "So, how exactly _do_ I start…?"

"I'm not just gonna stand here forever," the Keybearer answers with a playful grin. As ridiculous as all this is, he really is enjoying it. In fact, the sheer absurdity is only serving to enhance the experience. "You have to lead, Tel. Offer me your hand."

Hesitantly, the wizard holds up his hand. Sora gives him a gracious nod, taking it with a silly grin. Following what he remembers of the proper procedure, Telary pulls the younger boy closer. After a moment of blushing hesitation, he puts his free hand on Sora's waist. Well, he _tries_ to.

"Whoa there buddy!" Sora declares, trying his hardest to not burst into hysterics. "Hike that hand up a little, will ya? I mean, _pft_ , what kind of, _ha_ , what kind, _teehee_ , what kind of girl do you take me for?"

"Oh, ha ha!" His cheeks growing more furious red, almost to the point of matching his hair, the wizard adjusts his grip. "This is a fine time for jokes, Sora!"

"Hey, I'm just getting into character!" Sora says, frowning in mock-defensiveness. "Do you think Azlyn would let that kinda thing pass without a joke?"

"I think," Telary replies, "that if anything, she'd try and push my hand lower! Now can we just get on with the _real_ lesson?"

Sora roll his eyes, another small giggle escaping his lips. "Okay, so we're in position. Now, all you have to do is move. To the beat, if you can manage it. Just decide where you want to go, and then go there. I'll watch you for clues, then follow."

With another deep breath, Telary begins to follow the younger man's instructions. He steps forward, only off the beat by maybe a half-second, then left, then back, and right. A full square, just as he knows he's been taught before. But a long time ago, maybe six years? Anyway, he's a bit rusty. For a full minute, he and Sora just repeat their square-patterned steps.

"Don't feel afraid to change things up," Sora says after a while. "This is getting kinda boring. Hey, why don't you twirl me!"

"Um, uh…" the wizard stammers. In his head, he can just picture pulling Sora back in too hard, the pair of them slamming together and falling over each other. Talk about embarrassing! "I don't know."

"You just imagined the worst-case scenario, didn't you?" Sora shoots back with a knowing look. "Calm down, man. It isn't rocket science. Which, I think I should remind you, you _do_ know how to do!" Grinning, the Keybearer begins to chant, "Do it, do it, do it, _do it_!"

"Fine!" Rolling his eyes, Telary begins the twirling maneuver, watching Sora to make sure everything goes smoothly. The wizard steps back, keeping his arm steady to put some distance between him and his partner. Then, taking a deep breath, he pulls the Keybearer back in, twisting his wrist to give him some spin. Before he knows it, the twirl is over, and the boys briefly break contact, shifting their grips back to normal. Seamlessly, they start moving in a box-step again.

"That was pretty good!" Sora declares, bumping Telary with his shoulder. The movement awkwardly puts the pair in contact at a few more points than that, but both are too pleased to even notice. "See Tel, you just have to relax man. Then, even if things go wrong, you _can't_ be embarrassed!"

"He's exactly right, Tel."

The new voice startles the rooms occupants, who yelp and quickly leap apart. Turning to the door, they see Azlyn standing there with a smirk on her face.

"Oh, don't stop on my account," the knight says, amusement positively dripping from every word. She saunters closer to the boys, grinning ear-to-ear. "I'm just enjoying the show."

"We were j-just practicing dancing," Telary stammers, quickly slapping the needle off of the spinning record. The music cuts out immediately. "Just trying to, y'know, get it perfect for the wedding…"

"Y'know," Azlyn says with a sigh, placing a hand on her chest and looking dramatically away, "you hear all kinds of horror stories about the groom running off with your maid of honor, but you never think it'll happen to you."

" _Man_ of honor!" Sora quickly corrects, pridefully puffing out his chest. "And you know me, Az. I just can't resist those redheads!"

"Can we just…" Telary sighs, quickly realizing that the only way out of this is a complete subject change. "Anyway, did you want something, Azlyn?"

The knight shakes her head, still quite obviously amused. "No. I just heard that music while I was passing by. Wanted to see what was up."

"Well, as you can see everything is normal!" Telary says, crossing his arms. "Now, if you don't mind, I think it's time we were moving on to…"

Azlyn smirks. "The foxtrot?"

"Tango?" Sora chimes in with a giggle.

"Magnet spells," Telary replies with clenched teeth.

"Well then I'm out!" Azlyn declares, backing away to the door. "Have a good time. Just not _too_ good!" Before the boys can offer any admonishment, the knight is out the door and down the corridor.

"Sorry about that," Tel apologizes, quickly moving to push the record player out of the way so magic study can begin again. "Uh, so…"

"We're really done?" Sora asks, an oddly playful twinkle in his eye. "The dance is over?"

"Um, yes," the wizard replies, heading back towards the Keybearer. Still awkward and distracted, he runs straight into the younger boy's outstretched hand. Stopping hurriedly, he curiously eyes the appendage. "Uh, what are you doing?"

"Well," Sora says, trying and failing to fight back a smirk, "if the dance is over, then you really should do it formally."

"Which means…?" Telary rolls his eyes, already anticipating a ridiculous answer

"Well, it's traditional to kiss your partner's…"

Groaning, Telary bats Sora's hand away. "Oh, just knock it off! Now, the thing about Magnet spells is…"


	8. Riku and Azlyn

The steady rhythm of a fist hitting heavy canvas fills Riku's ears as he enters the Disney Castle gym. He stops, momentarily contemplating turning right around and walking out before the large room's sole occupant can sense his presence. But then the door slams, almost deafening in the silver-haired young man's state of heightened sense. He scowls, silently cursing himself.

"Wouldn't have mattered," Azlyn calls from across the room, pausing her sequence. She turns toward Riku, wearing a smug grin. "I could tell it was you the second you stepped up outside the door."

"Oh, I'm sure," Riku replies, rolling his eyes. In the spirit of in for a munny, in for a pound, he walks towards the blonde. She's gone back to punching, finishing off with a kick that rattles the bag's chain so hard Riku actually has a moment where he thinks it will go flying off. "Show off."

The knight snorts, caring little about how harsh it sounds. "Well, not all of us can hide behind our big fancy magic keys."

"Who's hiding?" Riku steps up onto the mat, folding his arms confidently as Azlyn turns to face him.

She quirks up an eyebrow. "Really, Rik? Think ya got what it takes? I seem to remember another fight between the two of us that only ended with Sora begging me not to lay your ass flat."

The silver-haired young man just nods, subtly stretching out his muscles in preparation. "That was two years and a metric ton of psychological problems ago. I didn't spend all that time in the Realm of Darkness catching up on my reading, ya know."

"Mm." Without warning, Azlyn takes the heavy bag in both hands and swings, sending it hurtling towards the older man. He deftly spins out of the way, hands up in preparation.

A good thing, as Azlyn is immediately diving toward him, fists clenched and ready. He catches the first blow, turning her aside and snapping his knee up. The knight's own knee deflects it, and she cartwheels to the side and out of range.

For a handful of seconds the two stay squaring off, getting ready for the next flurry of combat. Riku fakes left and darts right, punching for his opponent's stomach. She can't avoid the hit, but manages to turn aside and weaken its impact. Her elbow goes for his face, and he barely snaps his head back.

She punches low, and he deflects. Riku moves up for her face, succeeding in landing a solid hit. Azlyn stumbles back, oddly enough chuckling to herself.

"Good on ya, man!" she congratulates, settling back into ready stance. "You managed to beat level one. Game on, then!"

Before Riku can fully figure out the girl's absurdity, she's charging forward with a brazen yell. He gets ready for her, widening his stance to gather power. But that turns out to be the exact wrong move, as the knight drops into a slide that goes right underneath him.

She pops up fast, Riku barely turning before taking a trio of hits to the torso. The fourth rockets up, a solid chin hit that has the Keyblade wielder's teeth clacking together. It's a bona fide miracle none of them chip or crack.

As he moves back, Riku brings up his foot into Azlyn's vulnerable knee. The knight grunts in pain, her whole stance suddenly crumbling. Ignoring his own pain, the silver-haired young man reverses his momentum and charges her hard.

But Azlyn is on one knee, and with a reaction time that would shame a snake, she turns the negative positive. As Riku comes in, the knight wraps her arms around his body. She stands, lifting him right off the ground. Using his own momentum against him, Azlyn flips Riku over. Their backs hit the mat within seconds of each other.

They just lay there for a while, each one trying to catch their breath first. But even once they're under control (Azlyn edges Riku out by less than a heartbeat), neither combatant can think of any good reason to continue the fight.

"Sorry," Azlyn finally says, after a long silence. Curious, Riku turns his head to give her a questioning look. She only maintains eye contact for a second, before turning her gaze up toward the ceiling. "I shouldn't have brought up your whole evil bitch period."

He shrugs. "Eh, no problem. It's not like I don't have ammo of my own in that department now."

The knight winces, sitting up and hugging her knees to her chest. "Yeah," she admits with a short, bitter laugh. "I guess that's true." Her fist slams into the mat, the sound of its impact echoing throughout the room. "Ugh, damn it!"

"It's gonna feel like that for a while." Riku sits up himself, scooting next to the knight. She almost instinctively slides away an inch. "And when I say 'a while' I really mean pretty much every time it crosses your mind. But, it gets easier, once you can really accept that the people you did wrong to can forgive you. Still hurts, but not quite as much."

"And what happens when forgiveness makes you feel worse?"

The silver-haired young man can only shrug. "Hey, I'll tell you all about getting through that once _I_ manage to figure it out." The next few moments pass in an oddly companionable silence. Until a thought strikes Riku that he just can't ignore. "So, why munny?"

Azlyn does a double take. "Huh?"

"Well," Riku continues, shrugging, "it's just, y'know, you grew up in a literal castle. I can't really figure why you'd be so hungry when it comes to munny."

"Yeah, I guess I'd be asking that question too," Azlyn admits, taking a deep breath. "Well, actually you just hit the nail on the head. I grew up in a castle, I was raised by a kind. I had wealth and taste coming out the wazoo. I mean, the king and queen weren't the kind of people to flaunt it, but… Well, let's just say nobody could compete with my birthday parties growing up."

"You're, uh, really not making me see the hardship here," Riku says. "My seventh birthday party ended prematurely when we had to resuscitate the clown after he nearly drowned. My uncle was the clown, by the way."

Azlyn grimaces at the thought, but presses on regardless. "Yeah, well, everybody has to deal with different stuff, alright?" She pauses to shake her head before continuing the story, noticeably more surly than before. "I guess I had friends, I mean people always liked coming to the castle. It felt good to be included, I mean I was the only freaking human in the world besides Tel. For years, I thought I really had friends who liked me. Until the day I overhead two girls, one of them was basically my best friend, talking. About how hard it was to put up a front around the weird girl. But it was worth it for the perks, right?"

Riku winces, sympathetic once again. Not one hundred percent, but enough. "I guess you didn't take that well, hm?"

"Not really," the knight replies with a chuckle. "I wanted to run in and start bashing heads, but I held off. Still, that was the day I realized something. People may not like you, but they respect you if you've got enough stuff to keep them interested. From then on, I realized that you _can_ buy love. So…"

"So," Riku repeats. There's not much else to say. Except, "You realize that's crap, right?"

"Now, yeah," Azlyn admits, grinning just slightly. "But the lust for gold, for stuff, stayed strong. Like I didn't even realize they were connected. I guess even curing the disease doesn't always stop the symptoms."

"Yeah, it really does," Riku shoots back, teasingly bumping her shoulder with his. "You suck at metaphors."

"I suck at a lot of things."

The silver-haired young man shrugs. "Yeah, but everybody does. The key is to find people who don't mind, and can pick up your slack."

Azlyn snorts again. "Or kick your ass?"

"Yeah," Riku replies, standing up with a grin on his face. After a moment of hesitation, he offers the girl his hand.

She, predictably, scoffs at the gesture, springing up entirely on her own power. "Yeah, right." But at the same time, there is a smile on Azlyn's face. "Screw you, Rik."

He nods, smiling right back. "Screw you too, Az."

 **Just another something that should have been finished a long time ago.**


	9. Riku and Kairi

Takes place between Sora and the Forty Thieves and Law of the Jungle

"So you knew about the talking parrot too?" Kairi asks, giving Riku a teasing look as she leans back in her chair. The pair sit on the front porch of the Princess of Heart's home, relaxing in the wicker seats. It's a beautiful day out, a sea breeze keeping them cool despite the shining sun overhead.

"Yeah," Riku replies, smirking. There's a twinkle present in his eye that Kairi hasn't seen for a long time. It's good to see. "But I thought there were some things you should experience for yourself."

Kairi shrugs. "Hey, I don't really care. It was just a shock initially. After I got to know Iago, the fact that he was a talking bird entirely took a back seat to him being kind of a jerk."

The twinkle disappears from Riku's eye, and he looks away. He could just be focusing on the beautiful day that has graced Destiny Islands, but Kairi knows better than that. She's about to say something when he starts speaking.

"At least he's trying to change," the silver-haired young man says, his voice flat. "Second chances, people believing in you… That's important."

"It is," Kairi agrees, her posture straightening. "Anyway, as far as visits to other worlds go, I really enjoyed this one. I think Sora was pretty upset when the Heartless got involved though."

"But you were kind of excited, I imagine," Riku says teasingly, giving her a playful side-eye. "Getting in on the action again."

"Can't deny that," the redhead admits, smirking. "I get the feeling I don't have this Keyblade of mine just as a souvenir. It feels good, protecting others. Helping." She looks at Riku, a bit more serious suddenly. "Speaking of which, we could have used you around. Plus, you missed the city riding atop a giant turtle's back."

The silver-haired young man starts to get visibly uncomfortable again, shifting in his seat. "No, it was better I didn't. I would have just… Well, anyway, nobody wants the bride's former kidnapper to be part of the champagne toast."

Kairi can't help but roll her eyes. "That was a long time ago, Riku. Besides, Jasmine probably never even saw your face. We wouldn't have even needed to mention it." She leans forward, taking a breath. "So… What's the _real_ reason you didn't come?"

"Kairi…"

"No, no," she admonishes him, literally wagging her finger. "Don't start being evasive on me, Riku. You can tell me. You can trust me."

Riku is silent for a long, long moment. After a while, he shakes his head and a bitter laugh bursts out of him. "Okay, fine, fine." He sighs, finally returning his full attention to the girl he's talking to. "I'm just not sure it would work. I don't fit in with Azlyn and Telary. It's not like with you, having this shared history together."

"A history that has, until recently, proven itself more of a hindrance than anything helpful," Kairi interrupts him. "It wasn't until Telary and I agreed to focus on moving forward that we found our real connection."

"Maybe I should retract that last statement," Riku decides, wringing his hands together in his lap. "After all, I've got plenty of history with those two. It's just not a _good_ one." Seeing Kairi is about to protest, he holds up a hand. "I know, all is forgiven and we're all moving on and… That's easier with you and Sora. Again, history proves to be the key. They just look at me and see the guy who mistreated them over nothing but jealousy. Don't even argue with me on that, Kairi." He sighs, leaning back and shaking his head. "I just don't fit in."

"And you're never going to."

The sudden hardness in his friend's voice, not to mention the words themselves, startle Riku. He gives Kairi a perplexed look, asking a wordless question.

"Not if you don't try, at least," she clarifies, shrugging. "Honestly, avoiding them is just going to make things worse."

Riku can't argue with that, not effectively anyway. Especially considering his recent history of avoiding his problems to the point of insanity. Kairi can clearly tell she's won this round. She gives him a playful smirk that, for just a moment, reminds the silver-haired young man of old feelings he's forced himself to put aside.

For once, Kairi doesn't seem to pick up on his hidden feelings. "We were talking about taking some sort of trip in a few weeks. Camping or something like that. You should definitely come."

"Okay, I'll think about it," he says, trying his best to remain outwardly composed. In the end, though, he can't hold in his feelings. "Thanks, Kairi."

"It's no problem," the Princess of Heart replies serenely. "It's important to have a person you can talk things through with. As close as you and Sora are, I get that there are some things you might not want to bring up with him. If I can help…"

"That's just it," Riku interrupts, smiling softly. "You still _want_ to help me, Kairi. After what I did to you…"

"Riku…"

He doesn't let her complete the thought. "I know, we're putting everything behind us. But still… I don't think I've ever actually apologized. And what I did to you was wrong, Kairi. Maybe even worse than what I did to Sora. I took a good friendship and made it something else in my mind. Something wrong."

"Thank you, Riku," Kairi says, giving him the brightest, most earnest smile he's seen directed his way in a long while. "It means a lot to hear you say that." She moves quickly, placing herself beside him on the wicker couch. He shifts away instinctively, but doesn't flinch when she puts a hand on his arm. "Being honest, I think those old feelings of yours were holding us back from having the really great friendship we're supposed to have. Now that it's all behind us, I think we're going to be even better than before."

He places his own hand on hers. "I think you're right, Kairi. I really do."

"Never get tired of hearing that." Suddenly, the earnest expression on her face gives away to something more playful. She stands, looking down at Riku with a grin. "And, of course there's that _other_ thing we share. Something Sora and I could never replicate."

He gets her meaning immediately. "Aw, c'mon Kairi. It… It's been so long since we… since _I…_ "

"It's like riding a bike," the redhead scoffs. Reaching down, she wraps her hands around his wrist and pulls up hard. He allows himself to be tugged, which means Kairi has already won. She lets go and heads into the house, trusting him to follow her.

He does, not saying anything as she walks into the little room just off the entrance hall. It's a cozy reading area, lit brilliantly by the sun streaming in from two windows. Two plump chairs sit by the view, but Kairi ignores them. Instead, she takes a seat on the wooden bench in front of a baby grand piano. Riku joins her with a sigh, pulling up the wooden cover and exposing the white and black keys beneath.

"When was this thing tuned last?" he asks, a last ditch attempt at averting what's to come.

"Yuki does it every once in a while when she cleans the room," Kairi explains, referring to the mayor's longtime housekeeper. "I'm sure the piano will be fin. The _player_ on the other hand…"

"Playing to my ego won't work here," Riku admonishes her. "Because I have just as little faith in my skills as you do." Still, he can't deny that there's a certain urge. After all, the instrument is sitting right in front of him. It's been a long time, but old instincts die hard. It takes barely thirty seconds of preparation before he's playing. A moment later, Kairi picks up the song and begins to sing along in a soft voice.

It had been one of the things that had attracted her to him, all those years ago. The way she sang along as he played, their skills blending into something beautiful. Sora had wanted to join in, of course, but as skilled at many things as the boy is, a singer he ain't. No, this had been something just for Riku and Kairi.

And it still is, he realizes. The same feelings may not be involved, but just as Kairi said, that could be for the best. And so, Riku pushes into his song with more gusto than before, his redheaded friend stepping up her own game in response. He smiles at her, and she gives him one right back.

Riku plays on, happy to have a good friend by his side to make his song all the richer.


	10. Azlyn and Telary

Takes Place After Ever After

"C'mon, Tel," Azlyn practically begs her husband, suggestively rubbing her hand against the Gummi ship's radar. "You promised we'd do it someday, I remember that pretty clearly. And what better time, right? Just you and me, along in the cockpit, barely married twenty-four hours…" She pouts, emphasizing her lips as best she can.

"Gee, Az," Telary replies, nervously gripping the armrests of his chair. "I don't know. It just seems kind of, I mean, maybe a little bit…"

"It'll be _fun_!" Azlyn declares, leaning forward into the wizard's personal space. "I've always wanted to do it, and I know you've thought about it before too. Please? I'll be your best friend!"

"You already _are_ my best friend," he counters, a small grin escaping his forced stoicism. When he sees Azlyn's eyes light up, Telary realizes he's made a mistake.

"And you _still_ won't even think about teaching me how to fly the Gummi ship!" She leans back, turning away with her arms crossed petulantly. "Some best friend, huh?" It's all fairly comical, especially the way her eyes keep quickly darting back to the pilot.

But Telary knows this really isn't a laughing matter. Even playfully, hearing his wife (which is a noun he simply _adores_ being able to apply to the woman standing in front of him) question his devotion carries a considerable sting within. Best to simply give in, before playfulness escalates to the knight becoming seriously ticked off.

"Okay, okay!" he relents, throwing his hands up. "You win, Az."

She smiles, pushing off the console and walking towards him. He starts to rise, figuring he'll just stand to he side like when he taught Sora and Kairi. But Azlyn apparently has other plans, placing a hand on his chest and pushing the wizard back down into his chair.

"Hey, I'm not your sister," she informs him saucily. "I'm your _wife_ , Telary. And that means I get to learn the fun way!" Smiling, she gingerly sits herself down right in his lap.

Telary doesn't protest. What sane man would? "Okay, okay. Now, first thing's first. You're going to need a firm grip on both of the steering control rods. But don't squeeze them or anything, just gentle pressure."

Azlyn nods, quite conspicuously not pointing out the possible innuendos in what Telary just said. There's hardly need to, anyway.

"Make sure to keep an eye on all the system gauges," he says, looking over her shoulder to make sure everything's running properly himself. "And don't forget the radar, that's an important one to watch too. But also don't get so caught up in the instruments that you forget to actually _look_ where you're going. There's no need for us to run into any stray debris we don't need to."

For the next few minutes, they simply sit together in the chair, enjoying each other's presence. It feels right, somehow, just the two of them flying adrift through the vast sea between worlds.

"Is this really all there is to it?" Azlyn declares after a while, frowning at the vast and still empty space outside the cockpit. "Just flying in a straight line? Autopilot could do this!"

Telary shrugs. "Y'know, it's really not as glamorous as I might have made it seem. Not that I'm complaining, of course."

"Yeah, well _I_ am." She drops the control rods, leaning back into her husband a little more. Then suddenly, an idea strikes. "Hey Tel, does this seat go back?"

"Uh, yeah," the wizard replies, reaching for a lever beside the chair. He gives it a firm tug, simultaneously leaning his weight back. In a few moments, the chair lies completely perpendicular to the floor. The couple just rest upon it, looking up at the swirling patterns of Gummi space through the cockpit's dome.

"There sure is a lot of universe out there," Azlyn remarks, resting her hand on Telary's collarbone. "And we've seen more of it than most. Do you ever think about just how small we are, in comparison?"

"Uh," Telary replies, lifting his head to look down at the knight. "Yeah, sometimes. I try not to though. Freaks me out, honestly."

"Me too," his wife agrees, shivering just a bit at the thought. "But then I just remember that, tiny pieces are not, it's partly because of us that there's still a universe to be small in."

Telary murmurs a quiet agreement.

"And then I think about just how much that changed our lives," Azlyn continues, holding on to her oddly philosophical/melancholy mood. "Would we have realized what we mean to each other, if we'd stayed at the castle? If we'd been content to just live the lives that were planned for us?"

Telary shifts, wrapping his arms around the woman atop him. "I like to think we would. I like to think that, in any universe, there's you and there's me, and we're meant to fit perfectly together forever. I can't imagine a world where I don't love you, and you don't love me. Wouldn't want to."

To his surprise, Azlyn just starts laughing. He raises his head once again, frowning at his wife who only starts giggles harder upon seeing the expression.

"S-sorry, Tel," she apologizes after a minute on uncontrolled mirth. "You just, that just got so… So cheesy that I… I mean, I enjoy you saying that and feel the same way, but oh man, to hear you say it out loud!"

By now, Telary has joined his wife in laughing. "Oh wow, you're right. I didn't think about it when I was saying it, but now that I… Oh man, it was like an overdone greeting card!"

For a long time, the pair just laugh and enjoy each other's presence. Several minutes later, the mirth finally dies down.

"Well, that was fun," Azlyn remarks, resting once again against her husband's body. She begins lightly petting his chest, turning her head up to put his neck in range of her lips. "And now that I've got my first Gummi ship piloting lesson under my belt… Whaddya say we do that _other_ thing I've always wanted to do in the cockpit?"

Normally, Telary knows it would be his duty to act scandalized. But hey, he only gets one honeymoon doesn't he?

"I'm game."

 **And that's it for Dearly Beloved. I always enjoy getting to focus on character moments and dynamics, so this story was a real treat for me.**


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